Kids’ bedrooms. Redone. Fresh paint. New decor. Personalized new look. Fully prepped and completed . . . by whom?
Not me!
My teenagers did it all themselves! We’ll discuss more about that miracle in another post, but I made an amazing observation during that couple of weeks’ process. While my kids both waited for the spectacular themed tapestries they had each selected for their own room (coming clear from China and less trackable), they ran to get everything else prepared to receive it. They both decluttered their rooms, let go of items that were unnecessary - but hard to part with, and dropped off unwanted items at the thrift shop. They chose their own colors and put a fresh coat of paint on their walls. Each piece of furniture was sanded and painted. They spray painted frames to match the anticipated tapestries and got them hung. As the delivery date was still uncertain, my daughter searched for clear thumbtacks and kept them in a pile on her nightstand to be at-the-ready when her tapestry arrived.
I find it interesting that BOTH of their packages arrived weeks before the projected delivery dates online.
What Does Football Have to Do With It?
My dad has always teased me, saying that I don’t know the difference between a football and a soccer ball. I took P.E. in school, so I’m familiar with all of the balls. Just sayin’. Even though Daddy likes to exaggerate sometimes, let’s just say that I have never been much of a sports fan.
With that in mind, I learned a powerful lesson directly from a football analogy.
I participate in a weekly Mastermind call, and a couple weeks ago one of the women members asked us to consider the job of a receiver on the football field. Thankfully, I’ve seen enough snippets of the game to understand what she was talking about. This is super cool in relation to getting your goals - so stay with me.
The receiver’s job is to break away from all the players blocking him and run like crazy, poised and ready to catch the ball. When he first takes off, and even along the way, the quarterback hasn’t even thrown the ball to him yet. But the receiver does everything he can do to prepare to receive the ball that he just knows is going to come his way. When that ball shows up, he catches the ball (hopefully), and the play progresses.
Now consider . . . if the receiver waited until the quarterback threw the ball to start running, he would not be in position to receive the throw.
Isn’t that a fascinating principle?
Get Ready, Get Set . . .
Just like the receiver, (because in goal setting — we are the receiver) once we have set our goals, we have to prepare to receive them.
How do we do that, you ask?
We simply move forward on those things we do have control over that moves us in the direction of our goals.
In one of my faith’s book of scripture it says, “Let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.” (D.C. 123:17)
I love this! My kids did this very thing. They wished their tapestries could arrive the same day they ordered them, but I sincerely believe the process was sped up (instead of taking an additional month to arrive) because they cheerfully “ran for the ball, expecting it to smoothly land in their hands.” And it did.
GO!
What goals have you set? Have you been sitting on the sidelines hoping something would happen? Or can you clearly see it in your mind and are ready to move?
Decide what steps you can take to move toward your goal. Even if they seem insignificant (like collecting the thumbtacks to put the tapestry up), remember that every single step you take sends a message to the universe that you are ready to receive the thing that you desire.
You’ve got this. Now is the time.
Just RUN for it!
If you’re ready to ‘go the distance,’ I’m willing to run with you.